We must shift policy and practice away from sick care toward preventive, value-based, whole person care.
Hopkins Nurses are pressing ever forward to do just that—with the latest technology—all while navigating a shifting political environment. Here’s where they’re heading in 2025.
School nursing
“The health of our kids is just as important as the health of adults, because they are the foundation of the community.”
At the end of 2023, only about 50 registered nurses served more than 150 schools in Baltimore City Public Schools. February 2025 marks one year since the launch of School Health Nursing, a collaboration among Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Coppin State University, and Morgan State University. The program provides nurses, competency-based training, and critical supplies, building confidence among administrators, staff, parents, and students. Already, the initiative has identified numerous chronic health conditions among students. The three-year program currently supports five schools, with plans for expansion based on funding, fostering healthier futures for Baltimore’s children.
Read more in “School Health Nursing comes to Baltimore”
Expanding “women’s health”
When people think of “women’s health” they usually think “reproductive health,” but that’s not the full picture.
When people think of “women’s health” they usually think “reproductive health,” but that’s not the full picture. “Women’s health” is much broader than reproductive health alone. It encompasses a full spectrum of needs and challenges across a woman’s entire life, from birth through old age.
While reproductive health is crucial, it is equally important to pay attention to on the health of middle-aged and older women, particularly during pre- and post-menopause, and the changes that impact their health. Menopause is a significant transition that can affect various aspects of health, including cardiovascular, bone, and mental health.
In 2024, the White House launched a program to transform how our country conducts research and funds women’s health. As we enter 2025, this broader understanding of women’s health will shape the work of researchers, clinicians, and policymakers, paving the way for a more inclusive and comprehensive approach to health care for women at every stage of life.
Nonpharmacological interventions
Nonpharmacological interventions are taking center stage as innovative, evidence-based strategies.
In 2025, nonpharmacological interventions are taking center stage as innovative, evidence-based strategies for preventing and managing health conditions without medication, or to complement medication. These holistic, patient-centered strategies are reshaping the future of care. Here are five trends to watch:
- AI-driven personalization: Digital therapeutics and wearables are tailored exercise, cognitive behavioral therapy, and mindfulness programs based on real-time data.
- Validated integrative therapies: Acupuncture, acupressure, and mindfulness are gaining scientific backing for managing pain, fatigue, sleep, and mental health.
- Lifestyle medicine as first-line treatment: Exercise, and sleep interventions are increasingly prioritized for chronic disease prevention and management.
- Brain-body approaches in mental health: Movement therapies like tai chi, yoga, and neurofeedback enhance cognitive function and emotional resilience.
- Natural products and supplements: Growing research supports the role of botanicals, probiotics, and nutraceuticals in managing inflammation, immunity, and metabolic health.
Nursing education – outside of the hospital setting
Hospital-based clinical placements and clinical faculty are scarce resources, which limits the number of students schools of nursing can accept and enroll into nursing programs. To prepare nurses to change the world tomorrow, we’re enlarging the experiential pipeline to include outpatient clinics, schools, hospice facilities, and even virtual reality.
Check out how in “The Outside Track.”
Eliminating health inequities
Eliminating health inequities is the most promising solution to fix our broken health care system. With that in mind, the Institute for Policy Solutions (IPS) launched the Nursing Science Incubator for Social Determinants of Health Solutions (N-SISS). Led by IPS Executive Director Dr. Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Leona B. Carpenter Chair in Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health and Dr. Jason Farley, Professor and Leadership and Innovation Endowed Chair, this is a unique fellowship that will foster new talent, thinking, and research to identify innovative evidence-based approaches to fully eliminate health inequities.
Learn more about N-SISS, and meet the inaugural cohort